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This remarkable and unique selection of owls in art and folklore, as interpreted by artists and craftsmen over the centuries, forms the first book to every satisfy the cravings of collectors. — "Many collectors," Angus Cameron, an enthusiast of owls in art and nature, writes in his introductions, "have never seen a live owl in its dark and eerie ... more »haunts. Owl collectors need not be ornithologists to pay homage to this bird's appeal. What collector would reject a Picasso owl because the great artist, godlike as most artists are in this regard, 'evolved' his own owls. Picasso owls, like those of other artists, are owlish, and owlishness is what the collector is after.

"What is owlishness, and why do collectors collect owls rather than robins, say, or wrens, or even crows? One might answer quickly, some do collect bird miniatures, porcelains that are not owls. Wildfowlers collect decoys; some householders have a gilt eagle over their door frame; roosters make fine weathervanes; and the Staffordshire potters do make handsome birds of various species. But owl figurines and the owl in the graphic arts are to be found gracing the shelves of whatnots on the walls of homes far more often than those of any other bird.

"Although often held in folklore the world over as the bird of doom, of frightening portent, and a familiar of witches, the owl also has apotropaic powers-the power to ward off evil spirits. It is common in magico-religous lore that the symbol of doom and disaster, whose appearance foretells the coming of evil events, may at the same time forefend dire consequence, guard against such evils. Such dual powers are are especially inherent in the owl."« less